"A spoon full of sugar..." for Inner City Schools

Teaching in an inner city school made me realize that as a teacher, I will sometimes need to infuse the curriculum with "a spoon full of sugar". That is right, I am quoting Mary Poppins and her lovely chant, "Just a spoon full of sugar makes the medicine go down in the most delightful way." The sugar I used to make learning fun, exciting and engaging was TECHNOLOGY!

My most recent field placements have been in inner city schools. Some students came to class hungry and without school supplies. Obviously, students from economically disadvantaged homes have not been exposed to the many new technological innovations of the twenty-first century. In order to ensure that each child develops the skills base to succeed in today's society, it will be critical to prepare each student with the basic foundations. 

"Literacy" is a noun used to describe one's ability to read, write and interpret text. Macedo and Steinberg encourage us to reconsider the term "literacy"  and broaden it to include "the intellectual tools and capacities to fully participate in one's culture" (5). With this understanding, students should be able to type, scrutinize information for its validity (wiki, blog, journals), and stay "safe" (chat rooms). In addition to accessing information and communicating with technology, students must learn to analyze and evaluate information.

During my field experience, I had my students work in collaborative groups of four. Each group had one laptop computer. While listening to my cues, students navigated through Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, IMovie and the Internet. Each program was carefully integrated into a unit. Rather than tacking on computer literacy, I chose to weave media skills into the curriculum. Word was used for typing up good copies of Language Arts activities. Excel was used for graphing during a Mathematics unit. IMovie was used to create a scientific television show. My students LOVED using computers and looked forward to the lessons. Technology was the sugar that sweetened the learning journey greatly.

Media constructs messages that have bias and "hidden messages". Television and film provide visual manifestations and prejudice. Representations of class, gender and race are rarely neutral. It is necessary to teach our students to think critically. As part of a moral education unit, I asked student to describe the "Big Bad Wolf". I then showed my class a few video clips taken from the Little Red Riding Hood and The Three Little Pigs. The grade two class came up with an excellent list of coded constructions.

In the Little Red Riding Hood, patriarchal power, violent masculinity and male dominance is expressed. My students made these observations:

-Male vs. Female (Big & Strong vs. Little & Weak) = GENDER

- Bad vs. Good (Dishonest vs. Honest)

-Black vs. White (Evil vs. Innocent/Socialized) = Race/ Skin Colour/ Ethnicity

- Ugly vs. Beautiful (Appearance correlated to inner traits)

In the Three Little Pigs, the Big Bad Wolf's presence exudes similar traits:

-"I'll Huff and puff and blow your house down." Rich vs. Poor (Greedy takeover vs. Bricks/Sticks)

-Big vs. Small ("Little pig, Little pig, let me in.")

-Strong vs. Weak

Brainstorming meaning as a class was very successful. Depending on one's culture, the interpretations can be different. While most students were familiar with the Big Bad Wolf image, new students to the country were unaware of the character and his associated traits.

It is essential to teach students to be critical thinkers. It will be necessary to reframe education to include new technologies. I especially see this as a priority in inner city schools. Resources must be made available to ensure that these students will have equal opportunities to become active democratic participants of society.